It sounds like they have already contacted an attorney about this matter. I would recommend that they have their attorney let the registrant know that they intend to challenge their mark. Often times this will result in some agreement between the parties without getting into a protracted legal battle which is usually negative for both sides. I would try the carrot first, before I tried the stick.
Regards, Gerry
On 09/23/2010 03:47 PM, Jörg Sawatzki wrote:
Gerry,
the x2go trademark is registered with DPMA in the areas computer, software, and financial services. If it was registered as "food" or "washing powder", it would be allright. But this will definitely cause them lots of trouble after the opposition period has expired.
Jörg
Am Donnerstag, den 23.09.2010, 11:21 -0400 schrieb Gerry Reno:
On 09/23/2010 09:37 AM, Jörg Sawatzki wrote:
Hey Eli,
they will have to change the name/domain anyway! The brand/name "x2go" is registered with DPMA (the German patent and trademark registry institution) and is owned by "sino Aktiengesellschaft" in Düsseldorf. Well, and they would have to prove that they have been using the "x2go" term before those guys - and they'd have to do that before the opposition period has expired. As their responsiveness is very slow, they'll either miss the deadline or they don't want to bother a lawyer again to get the forms correctly filled out. :)
There are individuals and companies that are squatting both domain names and trademarks. The question would be, what date was the mark "x2go" registered and what is the scope of the registration. In other words you can have two entities that register the same mark but for use in different markets. For example, Ajax is a cleanser, Ajax is also a web technology. And even if it is the same market, it comes down to who was the first to use the mark "x2go" in a commercial transaction.
Regards, Gerry